A fallen empire. A warrior determined to protect her people. And the masked soldier who captures her behind enemy lines. The first novel in a dark, seductive, and all-consuming trilogy where hope is fickle but the fight is never over. Vordell was beautiful once. Its people lived in harmony, and their civilization flourished as they learned to harness and control the power of Light. Then the darkness came. The Iron Sky unfolded dark clouds across the land, thick enough to choke out the light of the suns. The ground cracked, releasing vicious creatures that looked like humanity's oldest fears. The Dar'rak-an enemy long believed to be buried and forgotten-returned to claim the world above. Soraya Tollmere has spent most of her life on the front lines of the brutal war that followed. Now a high-ranking commander, she knows loss better than anyone. By day, she leads troops across ruined landscapes and guides covert teams through enemy territory. By night, she meets with a Dar'rak defector who has kept humanity ...